Peer to Peer Magazine

PEER TO PEER: THE QUARTERLY MAGA ZINE OF ILTA 88 READY, SET, GO! On December 16, 2013, one year after the Bracewell management committee approved the concept, ShalePlay was officially launched in the Apple App Store. A full media and communications rollout was executed on January 15, 2014, so ShalePlay would not be overshadowed during the holiday season. From concept to rollout, the project took approximately 18 months to complete. According to the iTunes App Store's analytics, ShalePlay was downloaded 853 times in the first 24 hours after the January media launch. Bracewell used MapBox to create the ShalePlay map, and we had committed to 3,000 monthly views. In the first 24 hours we maxed out the monthly views allowed in our subscription, with 3,800 views. After two weeks we had to upgrade our subscription again to 100,000 views per month. We have had well over 46,000 map views, achieving sustained viewership above our most ambitious expectations. Since its launch, ShalePlay has had more than 39,000 sessions, demonstrating return visits and sustained readership, with over 3,300 unique visitors. The iTunes App Store currently includes six five-star reviews, surpassing our goal of two. Fifteen news articles were written about the launch, which also received extensive online news coverage. ShalePlay has had a global impact, reaching as far as Australia, Belgium, Russia, Singapore and many other countries. We've received feedback that professors are using ShalePlay in their teaching, energy traders are relying on it and even firemen training for shale emergencies are referring to it. We've also monitored our social media and seen a clear spike and increase of chatter about the firm and ShalePlay over a six-week period before, during and after the launch. WHAT'S NEXT? Bracewell launched the newest version of ShalePlay in July 2013, incorporating international news and information, more detailed push notifications, as well as making it available for Android users. A law firm app is a serious undertaking, requiring strategy, the support of firm management, financial commitment and long-term growth plans. If your firm is considering marketing an app, these key factors will help ensure your app is as successful as ShalePlay has been for Bracewell. LESSONS LEARNED We have had well over 46,000 map views, achieving sustained viewership above our most ambitious expectations. TOP 5 TAKEAWAYS We learned many lessons in developing and marketing ShalePlay because this was the first time our firm, and our marketing department, had created an app of any type. Here are five more important lessons for your firm if you are considering an app: 1. The app development vendor had to understand unique characteristics for attorney advertising rules. The vendor relationship is like a marriage; pick your partner well and plan to work together for a long time! 2. Anticipate unexpected expenses. We had extra costs at the final stage due to a change in the iOS platform that required a redesign and resubmission of the technology. 3. Make the app simple and easy to use. Generate push notifications to alert readers to updates. 4. Key ingredients in making the app development a success are meeting regularly and often and also sticking to a project timeline. 5. Before the project is completed, share the app with firm attorneys for feedback. While doing this, we learned we had to change the name of the app. Such a development should happen sooner rather than later.

• Cover